Finally I won a medal!

For those who don't knit or crochet or aren't familiar with Ravelry this blog post will mean very little. For the rest of you...well indulge me for a few minutes.

On Ravelry (and seriously if you knit or crochet and haven't joined yet I really don't understand why), they are sponsoring another Ravelympics during the Winter Olympics. They've done this before and I even entered in 2008. Didn't finish anything so of course I didn't medal. You see this is my kind of Olympics because if you set a goal and you finish within the time frame of the 14 days of the Olympics then you get a medal. Last time I tried to make a shawl. That was a dismal failure. This time I took at look at my projects page and saw a lot of WIPs (works in progress for those who have stuck in there and don't know the lingo) and thought, I want to finish these off. Some don't need a lot of work, others a little more. The event is called WIPs Dancing. (You know like Ice Dancing but for WIPs...isn't that adorable?) The other night, Monday actually, I finished these:

The pattern is sort of the Popover Mitts pattern from an out of print book by Cascade yarns. I made some changes and used a different yarn (Brown Sheep Nature Spun Worsted), but the results a wonderful. I've worn them all week! We've had a nice cold snap and that has meant I needed something to keep my hands nice and warm. The color of the yarn was "Cherry" so I call them "Cherry Popovers". And for all this I received this lovely medal. I'm very proud and would like to thank my parents and friends for believing in me that I COULD actually FINISH a project!

Really....I'm alive

I know there must have been some discussion, but I'm here to put that to rest...I'm alive, and I escaped the kidnappers so don't send that ransom you were asked for. Seriously, I've been a very bad blogger and haven't kept you all up to date on what's happening in my life. So, I'm going to try and quickly bring you up to date and then try very hard to blog more then once every 6 months.

First, I got a contract job and that seems to have taken up more of my time then I'd like. Maybe time isn't the right word, maybe energy is. I'm coming to realize that the RA doesn't always allow me the same energy level that I think I have. So some things fall by the wayside. However, I've loved working at this job and was excited when my contract was extended to the end of March. Of course that means I now have to start looking for the next job, but that's ok too.

Since my last post I've seen
With my friend Kathe. We had a blast! What a great show.

I've managed to finish a few knitting projects, including a cute beret that I wore to work yesterday but that I don't have pictures of it yet. I also finished a stole/scarf and no there aren't any pictures of that. I've been working on a "super secret project" for about 2 weeks now. It's coming along, but slower then I had hoped it would.

As usual I went to hang out with my friends at a stitching retreat in October. We were back in Hilton Head again and had a great time together. One of the classes we were supposed to learn how to make scrimshaw. I learned that I'm not going to be making much of it myself and that I now appreciate the cost much more. While there my DF Heather helped me do the finishing for Halloween Fairy. Isn't she pretty?

Christmas was our usual decorating craziness with our open house on Christmas Eve thrown in. Then Christmas Day we went down to the church to have dinner with at the community dinner and hang out with everyone down there.

New Year's Day found me down at the Gator Bowl to say farewell to my beloved Coach Bowden. We had a great time and I admit I got teary eyed several times. The city did a fantastic job of sending him off in style. AND the team pulled together and got a win over WVU.Did I mention it was cold and rainy that day? It was, but we bundled up and had fun. I even managed to wear a new hat I'd knitted that week AND my HP/FSU scarf. (Jill & I above at the game.)

In January I took a trip up to Atlanta to spend time with my friend Jean (a.k.a. Doxietrek) for her birthday. It snowed, and more importantly the roads iced up so we spent a couple of days just hanging at her house. Our friend Ann had come in from TN so we stitched, knit and played some Wii games. Apparently it was news to Jean that I'm a tad bit competitive. But it did let me figure out that I like the Wii, so when I got home I ordered one as a late Christmas present. Having fun with it.

That's about covers the high points. I'll leave you with a gratuitous picture of my fireplace this Christmas. Had to put new lights on the garland and went with LEDs. Love the way they look, especially with the flowers I used.

Travel...food...it's all good

So many things to talk about I have no idea where or how to start. Let's see...many of you know that I decided to go to WV with my parents the middle of last month. I'm sure some of you may be wondering how I managed that when I announced I had a job. It's simple, yet complicated. Bottom line, the job seems to have fallen through. Not enough funding. So I'm back to looking and talking to headhunters. Oh the fun.

But it did allow me to drive my parents to WV for my mom's 55th high school reunion and some time with family. We got such a late start on the 15th that we stopped for the night in SC. Then we took our time getting started the next day so that we barely arrived at my aunt's house in time for dinner on Wednesday.

My mom's class joins with the class before and after to have their reunion and for the last several they have had a picnic on Friday and a dinner and dance on Saturday. I love going to the Friday night picnic because it's relaxed and they have so much fun talking about all kinds of things. It's also when some of their old teachers show up.This is my mom on the right and the woman who was her "Home Economics" teacher. I was knitting on a sock when she stopped by where we were sitting and she wanted to know if mom had taught me how to sew and knit. My mother did teach me to sew as a child, but never could teach me to knit, my friend Kathe did that. Mom told her yes to sewing, although I never have sewn as well as she has, but that I am a much better cook then she is. My aunt said her teacher wouldn't believe that since mom was always the "golden child".

Coach D'Antoni stopped by...no not Mike, his father.We asked him if he'd been to NYC to see Mike coach and he said yes, but he missed going to Phoenix...NYC is colder!

The evening was held in the school cafeteria. Mullens High School no longer exists, the building is now a middle school. We had a good time talking and having some really good pork bar-b-que.

This trip I managed to get to visit some places I hadn't been. We took a day and went to Fayetteville, WV. We spent some time shopping in the Ben Franklin there. They had some great fabric. I really wish I'd had my box of ornaments that I need fabric for finishing with me. Then we went looking for a place to eat and found ourselves at Cathedral Cafe. I had a veggie sandwich and tortellini salad that was delicious. My aunt had quiche and mom had a Reuben. We all thought it was excellent and would go back again, next time maybe leave some room for desert. I highly recommend it if you're in the area for Bridge Day or some white-water rafting or visiting one of the really wonderful state parks near there. (Hawks Nest comes to mind.)

We also took a day and went to Lewisburg, WV. Eat lunch at The Stardust Cafe. Amazing food. We really should have left room here for desert since the owner's brother is the Crazy Baker and bakes all the deserts for them. I really would have loved something off the pretty red tray the server brought to show us the desert choices. We walked the main downtown street and checked out most of the shops. I even stopped in O'Shea's All About Beauty where you could get your hair cut and find some really pretty yarn. I managed to leave with just some sock yarn, which I don't have a picture of. We took a look through a few antique shops, but didn't find anything we couldn't live without. Finally I scored a glass of Iced Chai at The Wild Bean. My aunt had told me there was a really interesting Irish Pub there we would check out. Unfortunately they aren't open on Thursday's so we didn't get to try it out. We'll be going back though, because they have Irish Stew, Guinness and something called Chocolate Guinness Cake. When I read this description I knew I'd want to start with desert, "Brought to you by the Irish Pub and the Crazy Baker: A deep chocolate cake infused with the elixir Guinness Stout. The cream cheese frosting has a generous dose of dark Jamaican rum." Now that sounds like something worthy of the numerous calories it has to have. What I'd really like to do is stay at one of the B&B's in Lewisburg and be able to hang out one night when they are having traditional Irish music.

Another first this trip was lunch at King Tut Drive-in in Beckley. This is the first place my aunt ever had pizza. Mom & Nora say it hasn't changed much since they first went there in the '50s.
Mom volunteered to hold up my sock at the sign. Have to say that I've always thought the hot dogs at the Dairy Queen in Hinton were some of the best, but the one I had here surpassed it. Now I want to go back and try the pizza which my aunt says is really good. Oh, and again with desert. For some reason we managed to never save room for it and they have home made pies.

So, that about takes care of the trip. There were other side trips, but nothing major. I did I lot of knitting and reading. All in all, a really good vacation.

A Blog Award

Not sure I deserve an award for my blog lately since it's been so sporadic, but my friend Ria over at "Short Attention Span Theater" thought I did last month. How she manages to blog most every day while raising an amazing daughter, working and being married is beyond me. She makes me tired just thinking about it. I met Ria online because we both knit and like NASCAR, which obviously makes her a very wonderful person so go check out her blog. I have to say though we've never met IRL, I just know she's all kinds of awesome, and not just because I'm fairly certain she laughs at my snarky remarks when we're on a chat during a NASCAR race.

The rules of the award are as follows: (oh and let me point out for the non-USA bloggers who I'll be naming you have to read this in your best Scarlett O'Hara or Rhett Butler voice. Carry on.)

Pam says: “In my best southern accent, I would like to say that I have been thinking about a new award and what I would like it to say. People are like Forrest Gump said ” Life is like a box of chocolates and you never know what you’re gonna get.

You can see this box of chocolates is filled with different and unique candies and just like the chocolates we are all different and unique people. We are the same in that we all have common ingredients that make us more a like than not. Except for the frosting, which represents our personalities, we are indeed very similar on the inside.”

And of course there are rules: 1. That you must pass this award to others.

2. Link back to me when you have passed them forward.

3. Write a nice post about this award.

4. You must read this award with a southern accent. I call it southern day where we all have to speak with a southern accent. I know that will be hard for some of you, but for the rest of us, we will be fine. So now, ya’ll just enjoy this little ol’ award and have fun with it.

5. And of course let your folks know that they have a nice award waiting for them.

So who get's the box of chocolate next?

Jill at Stash Collector (maybe she'll post now too!)

Heather at It's Geek to Me (a.k.a. "The Magic that is Heather")

Jackie at Jackie's Stitches (because I just taught her to stitch on linen and she's amazing!)

Grant at Mostly Harmless (because how else would I see lovely pics of England and keep up with the Reading soccer...I mean football scores? oh and I shouldn't forget the lovely pottery.)

Karoline at Karoline's Corner (because she has amazing stitching and the every lovely Rosie, oh and more lovely shots of the UK.)

Siobhan at Notes from Blue Hen Hollow (of the prolific and beautiful samplers and who I hope one day to visit in Ireland when I go to see where my Sullivan family ties came from.)

Melody at Wooley Thoughts (whom I stitch and knit with IRL and who's rugs I think are magnificent)

I hope everyone enjoys their box of chocolates as much as I enjoy seeing a little bit of their world in their blogs. (BTW, I changed the picture of the box of chocolates because...well I don't know why. This picture of the chocolates is from this company in the UK. Sometimes I just drool over what they have on their website. I'm thinking it would be worth the trip.)

And there was much rejoicing!

I just got an email that I've been offered a new short-term contract/consulting job.

That is all.

Another new start

So, I made another new start today. Which looks bad, but it's for a class I'll be teaching Sept. 12th. That means I need to work fast in the hopes it will be finished before class starts. It's a cowl pattern with a drop stitch pattern in it made from Cascade 220. Fairly easy and mindless. That being said, I managed to have to start it twice today because I twisted the join, but once I restarted I was able to get the first repeat finished....just about 13 more to go! No picture yet, there isn't much to see.

Otherwise, not much going on. Still looking for a job. Some things don't seem to change much lately.

So I like people...

Your result for Howard Gardner's Eight Types of Intelligence Test...

Interpersonal

41% Logical, 24% Spatial, 41% Linguistic, 20% Intrapersonal, 49% Interpersonal, 47% Musical, 6% Bodily-Kinesthetic and 12% Naturalistic!

"This area has to do with interaction with others. People in this category are usually extroverts and are characterized by their sensitivity to others' moods, feelings, temperaments and motivations, and their ability to cooperate in order to work as part of a group. They communicate effectively and empathize easily with others, and may be either leaders or followers. They typically learn best by working with others and often enjoy discussion and debate.

Careers which suit those with this intelligence include politicians, managers, teachers, social workers and diplomats." (Wikipedia)

Take Howard Gardner's Eight Types of Intelligence Test at HelloQuizzy